James Brown on his knees at the Apollo, Iggy picking a fight onstage with the Ann Arbour Hell's Angels, The Sex Pistols sailing by Buckingham Palace blasting "God Save the Queen;" none of them a fraction as bad-ass as the firebrand godfather of Afrobeat, Fela Kuti. As dangerous as many musicians posit themselves to be, few are peers with genuine brigands and outlaws. Fewer still are considered enemies of the state. Perhaps none are deemed so dangerous that they faced torture and attempted assassination at the hands of their own government — except Fela.
The legend of Fela Kuti's struggle against the Nigerian government would be moot without the music. With drummer Tony Allen, Fela wrapped West Africa's rolling poly-rhythms with the brassy aggression of American funk to create Afrobeat. A potent template for epic instrumental workouts over which Fela would preach like a man possessed, churning audiences into riots.
But it was not a fusion born at fever pitch. Fela's earlier singles (collected on the latter half of this reissue) have more swagger than sweat in their stride. The title cut, "Roforofo Fight," is the first example of Fela at full sail, as the tempos rise and the band tightens into a machine of pure momentum, the rhythm section rides the beat raw for two minutes before the horns launch a full assault on your adrenal glands. The next thirteen minutes are a whirlwind of percussive ecstasy and furious machismo and within the eye of the storm is Fela himself, a man who through music is turned into a force of nature. Don't dare resist; his resolve is stronger. All hail the Black President.
1. Roforofo Fight
2. Go Slow
3. Question Jam Answer
4. Trouble Sleep Yanga Wake Am
5. Shenshema
6. Ariya
1. Roforofo Fight
2. Go Slow
3. Question Jam Answer
4. Trouble Sleep Yanga Wake Am
5. Shenshema
6. Ariya